Something Elsewhere
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MAD ABOUT THE BEATLES (2016): John, Paul, George, Ringo and Alfred
21 Apr 2016 | 2 min read
Of course Mad magazine -- which had been skewering popular culture since its inception in the early Fifties -- would take an interest in the Beatles. Their hairstyles and distinctive appearance alone, not to mention their enormous popularity in America, made them an enjoyable target for satire, parody and cartoons by the magazine's in-house wits. Ringo was ripe for caricature. ... > Read more
MUSIC MANAGERS AWARDS (2016): And the envelope, please
18 Apr 2016 | 1 min read
In the past two decades a very clear music business has emerged in New Zealand. Being a musician is a viable career option these days – it's still going to be struggle however – but around the songmaker are circles of support, notably band managers who negotiate the minefield of contracts, record companies, distribution and touring. And then some. Getting a manager... > Read more
THE TAITE MUSIC PRIZE FINALISTS (2016): Money don't get everything it's true, but . . .
15 Apr 2016 | 1 min read
The old awards' show line is, "It's an honour just to be nominated . . ." But in the case of the annual Taite Music Prize it most certainly is because just to get onto the shortlist means you will be in illustrious and often innovative company. Every year since 2010 the Taite Music Prize – named for the late journalist and music aficionado Dylan Taite – goes... > Read more
RANDOM RADIO (2015- ): Archived radio spots
9 Apr 2016 | 1 min read
Because Elsewhere is so eclectic in its taste, Graham is frequently invited on to various radio programmes to discuss music, great concerts and the passing of some greats (and there have been a few lately) as well as introduce new and often different music to audiences. In 2015 he was interviewed by Jesse Mulligan on RadioNZ National about his background and the Volume exhibition at the... > Read more
FRANK ZAPPA RESURRECTED (2016): The floorboards creak and out come the freaks
4 Apr 2016 | 3 min read
The importance and impact of some musicians far outstrips the sales of their albums or concert tickets. The late Frank Zappa – who died in '93 at just 52 – was one of those. Listen to just three or four of his albums chosen at random and you couldn't help but conclude that here was a musician unconstrained by style or genre, indifferent toward and, indeed aggressively... > Read more
PICO IYER INTERVIEWED (2007): And knowing you, Leonard Cohen
25 Jan 2016 | 7 min read
When the writer Pico Iyer came to New Zealand for a Writers and Readers Festival in 2007, it was my pleasure to host a panel on which he was on where the subject was travel writing. As one who had done this travel writing thing with varying degrees of success I was as interested as anyone as to what ideas these writers (international and local) might be able to pass on. The local... > Read more
THE TIMETABLE FOR THE LANEWAY FESTIVAL 2016
23 Jan 2016 | <1 min read
The annual Laneway Festival in Auckland has become one of the hottest on the music calender: hottest as in the site at Silo Park (which has to import shade tents) can be blistering in the summer heat. So -- more than Big Day Outs and such in the past -- it is one to prepare for: hat, shades, sunscreen, drink plenty of water and . . . be prepared to see some very exciting acts, many in the... > Read more
Exploring Nature's Pattern Magic by Dee and Mike Pigneguy (Mary Egan Publishing)
16 Aug 2015 | <1 min read
Although Elsewhere isn't here for children we do acknowledge they exist. (They are the small human-like creatures that I am forced to stop for outside schools, right?) Anyway from time to time-- especially when Robin Nathan releases an album -- we like to throw the spotlight on something for the kids. And this book came our way which -- although visually very busy -- looks like it would... > Read more
HALF A CENTURY OF ORIGINAL NEW ZEALAND SONGS (2015): 50 Years of the Silver Scroll award
3 Jul 2015 | 2 min read
Looking back, 1965 was a watershed year in New Zealand popular music. The snowball effect of the Beatles and the sound of British pop fuelled the local music scene and suddenly bands were everywhere and. Accordingly, venues opened up to accommodate them. It was significant that in '65 television also caught up with the game in the form of pop television shows (locally... > Read more
40 YEARS OF THE NEW ZEALAND MUSIC CHARTS (2015): Pub quiz time, folks
28 May 2015 | <1 min read
Some weeks ago when it was clear there would be some celebration of four decades of official music charts in New Zealand, one of those researching it asked me a question which stumped me. What New Zealand act had three consecutive number one singles? And no, it wasn't a Finn or Dave Dobbyn. The answer when it came made me reconsider just how much I knew about pop hits. It was... > Read more
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THE AUCKLAND FESTIVAL OF PHOTOGRAPHY (2015): LIfe in the lens
28 May 2015 | 1 min read
The annual festival of photography which opens in Auckland today at various locations, is more than just a showcase of the work by many and diverse photographers but also offers the viewer an insight into the lives of others. And many images also tell us something about we live. The full programme for the festival is here, but note also it includes not just exhibitions but workshops,... > Read more
AUSTRALIAN AUTOMOBILE DESIGN EXHIBIT (2015): G'day Bruce, godda new mowda?
15 May 2015 | 3 min read | 1
Amidst the highly polished and gleamingly seductive automobile flesh in Melbourne's National Gallery of Victoria right now is an oddity which draws a lot of attention. It is a battered, dust-coloured flatbed Ford ute from 1934. It was found under a peppercorn tree in nearby Gippsland in the 80s and is presented much as it was, untouched by restoration. In the company of... > Read more
Neil Finn and Jim Carter: Blue Smoke (2015)
23 Apr 2015 | 1 min read
When the recording of Blue Smoke by the Ruru Karaitiana Quintette was released in February 1949, the Second World War had only been over for around three and half years. The memories of loved ones who never returned were still fresh and painful, and in many homes -- even for decades after -- their photos were on lounge walls or the top of the sideboard. Or lining the walls of marae... > Read more
RECORD STORE DAY 2015: Back to black
13 Apr 2015 | 6 min read | 1
The annual Record Store Day is an opportunity to show the love for vinyl as artists local and international issue good old fashioned records, many of them limited editions and often coming in special packaging. So now is not the time to be worried about the credit card, just let it do the work this coming Saturday, April 18. We offer here a quick rundown on what stores are doing... > Read more
THE TAITE MUSIC AWARD FINALISTS 2015: Money changes everything?
8 Apr 2015 | 13 min read
Every year since 2010 the Taite Music Prize – named for the late journalist and music aficionado Dylan Taite – goes to an artist whose album of the previous year, irrespective of commercial success, is considered outstanding for its consistent creativity. Previous winners have been: Lawrence Arabia, Chant Darling (2010); Ladi6 ‘The Liberation Of’ (2011);... > Read more
VIETNAM IN 1969: A true story
8 Apr 2015 | <1 min read
In 1969, as an 18-year old, I went to Vietnam. Not to fight of course, but as a short-term "tourist". It was a brief event in a long life but confirmed for me even at that early age that here was a war which could not be won by traditional military means. I thought the same of various countries in the Middle East when I flew over them some decades later. A few years ago I was... > Read more
LUCIA CARBINES INTERVIEWED (2014): The girl in the bubble
19 Jan 2015 | 7 min read
When Lucia Carbines says some bodies are more flexible than others you believe her, because this affable, Christchurch-born 20-year old is the elastic proof. As “Miss A In A Bubble” – wearing a stars'n'stripes one-piece, her long hair tucked into a red bob wig – Carbines performs her balletic contortions at the Empire show in the Spiegeltent to audiences hushed... > Read more
THE AUSTRALIAN MUSIC AWARDS (2014): Come and see the real thing . . .
27 Nov 2014 | 6 min read | 1
The Star in Sydney – a block-occupying casino-cum-hotel with restaurant and bar complexes so large it needs needs no other name than that for a taxi driver – has at least half a dozen entrances. As I discovered. But to find the red carpet for the ARIAs – the Australian music awards – was easy. I just followed the screams. Last night among... > Read more
NEW ZEALAND MUSIC AWARDS 2014: You come a long way, baby
21 Nov 2014 | 5 min read
Here's something I sometimes tell the young students in my New Zealand Music Studies course at the University of Auckland: The first music awards show I went to in about 1988 was held in a small room in what is now the Langham Hotel. That room must have held maybe 60 people and my recollection was – aside from Herbs who made up quite a crew – there were... > Read more
BADFINGER and HARRY NILSSON: Without them, no Without You
3 Nov 2014 | 2 min read | 6
Behind most hit songs -- perhaps even behind many songs -- there can be an interesting story. As songwriters tell us in the Famous Elsewhere Songwriting Questionnaire, very few songs dropped fully formed into an artist's lap. The story behind Harry Nilsson winning a Grammy in 1973 for Without You is interesting, but also comes with a patina of sadness. Badfinger were a British pop band... > Read more